''Saranggola'' (international title: ''The Kite'') is a 1999 Filipino drama film directed by Gil Portes, who co-wrote the film's story and screenplay with Jose Y. Dalisay Jr. It stars Ricky Davao,

Lester Llansang Lester Ferrer Salansang (born July 3, 1985), known professionally as Lester Llansang, is a Filipino actor who appeared in the film ''Saranggola'' when he was 14 years old. He plays the role of a schoolboy who witnessed a crime committed by his po ...

and

Jennifer Sevilla Jennifer Sevilla-Go (born May 14, 1974) is a Filipino actress in movies and television shows. She was a former member of '' That's Entertainment''. Personal life Jeniffer Sevilla was born on May 14, 1974 in Quezon City. She is only child. She st ...

. It is a morality tale, showing murder and corruption through the eyes of a child. Produced by Teamwork Productions and distributed by GMA Films, the film was theatrically released on June 23, 1999.

Plot

Though widowed, ex-cop, Homer, (Ricky Davao) is a kindly father to his ten-year-old son, Rex (Lester Llansang). He is considered to be something of a bully in the poor Manila neighborhood where he lives. After mistaking a child retrieving a snarled kite for a burglar, Homer kills the boy and then hurriedly tries to cover up his error. Unbeknownst to his dad, Rex witnessed the event, too. As the two separately wrestle with their consciences, the neighbors find out and chaos soon ensues.

Cast

* Ricky Davao as Homer Agustines *

as Rex Agustines *

as Anita * Mark Gil as Jack Lumauig * Sining Blanco as Enye Bumanlag * Daryl Reyes as Tonton Bumanlag * Connie Chua as Tonton's Mother * Nanding Josef as Tonton's Father * Roy Alvarez as Cong. Ventura * RR Herrera as Leo Ventura * Aleth dela Cruz as Aling Karing * Diding Andres as Pacing * Nonong Talbo as Mang Kadyo * Mar Gachitorena as Senior Cop * Tess Orias as Ms. Rojo

Reception

Isah Red of the '' Manila Standard'' gave ''Saranggola'' a positive review, calling the film thematically challenging. He praises director Gil Portes for focusing on how the crime affects the relationship of the father and son, in the form of Jan Svěrák's '' Kolya''. Though he considers the film's premise as encouraging, he criticizes the film's pacing.

Awards and nominations

The film won several awards at the 1999 Manila Film Festival including: Best Picture, Best Actor ( Ricky Davao), Best Original Story, Best Screenplay (Gil Portes and Butch Dalisay) and Best Theme Song. It was also nominated for the

Golden St. George The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...

at the

21st Moscow International Film Festival The 21st Moscow International Film Festival was held from 19 to 29 July 1999. The Golden St. George was awarded to the Japanese film ''Will to Live'' directed by Kaneto Shindo. Jury * Fernando Solanas (Argentina – President of the Jury) * Flor ...

. Ricky Davao was also hailed as Best Actor at the 1999 Cinemanila International Film Festival for this film. In 2000, the film won the FAMAS Best Child Actor Award (Lester Llansang) and was nominated for four more awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actor (Ricky Davao)) at the FAMAS Awards. It also won the Gawad Urian Award for Best Actor (Ricky Davao) and was nominated for 5 more awards at the 2000 Gawad Urian Awards. In the same year it won the Original Screenplay of the Year (Gil Portes and Butch Dalisay) and the Actor of the Year (Ricky Davao) and was nominated for 3 more awards at the

Star Awards The Star Awards (Chinese: 红星大奖) are awards for artistic and technical merit in the media organisation Mediacorp of Singapore where Mediacorp recognises entertainers under their employment for outstanding performances of the year. The ...

for Movies. The film was also the Philippines' official entry to: the Academy Awards ( Oscars); the 2000

Young Artists Award Young may refer to: * Offspring, the product of reproduction of a new organism produced by one or more parents * Youth, the time of life when one is young, often meaning the time between childhood and adulthood Music * The Young, an American roc ...

, where it was nominated for Best International Film and Best Performance in an International Film (Lester Llansang); the 2000

Indian Film Festival Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

; and other international film festivals.

References

External links

* GMA Pictures films 1999 films 1999 drama films Tagalog-language films Philippine drama films Films directed by Gil Portes Films with screenplays by Jose Dalisay Jr. {{Philippines-film-stub